Thyssenkrupp to cut 3,000 jobs in steel deal

FRANKFURT, March 25, 2020

German elevator maker Thyssenkrupp said it will cut up to 3,000 jobs by 2026 as part of a steel agreement reached with IG Metall, the leading metalworkers' union in Germany.

Thyssenkrupp and IG Metall agreed firstly on an immediate "Corona crisis package” to deal with the pandemic and secondly on the conclusion of a collective agreement. The company regulations necessary for implementation, the reconciliation of interests and the social plan were also agreed.

The framework conditions for the implementation of the 20-30 steel strategy are thus in place. The agreement applies to all German steel locations of thyssenkrupp. The collective agreement will enter into force on April 01, 2020 and run for 6 years until March 31, 2026.

Of the total of approximately 3,000 jobs, around 1,000 will be cut in administration. Eight-hundred jobs are affected in the heavy plate segment. In addition, around 1,200 jobs will be cut beginning in 2022 through the optimization of the production network.

The job reductions have been firmly agreed and will be carried out in a socially responsible manner. The job security is valid until March 31, 2026, a thyssenkrupp statement said.

Oliver Burkhard, executive Board member for Human resources and labour director of thyssenkrupp AG: "The reorganization challenges all of us. Companies and employees. But: Such comprehensive changes are only possible with and not against the employees. Together we are now proving this once again at steel. With a good balance between economic necessity and social responsibility."

Thyssenkrupp and IG Metall have also agreed on an immediate "Corona crisis package”. The bargaining parties have agreed that in the current situation individual measures of the steel strategy 20-30 will be regularly reviewed in the course of implementation. To this end, a joint monthly monitoring of the situation for the duration of the pandemic has been agreed to implement the agreement.

The immediate package also includes the requirement for thyssenkrupp Steel Europe's operations to increase short-time work compensation to 80% in the event of short-time working. In addition, it is agreed that a collectively agreed special payment will be converted into days off.

"We will have to go into short-time work at many locations in the coming weeks. This will initially affect production-related areas, but also administration. We are taking a close look at all of them to see when which measures make sense. Even when we run out of work, we try to keep everyone in employment. So we can get back on track after the crisis,” Burkhard concluded. – TradeArabia News Service